The Blackburn Point Swing Bridge has carried Casey Key residents across the Intracoastal Waterway for nearly 100 years. Sarasota County is now well into a formal study of how to replace it, and the decisions made over the next year will shape how we get on and off the island for decades. Here is where the project stands and how you can weigh in.
A century-old landmark
Built in 1925–26, the swing bridge is listed on both the National Register of Historic Places and the Sarasota County Register of Historic Places. It sits on Blackburn Point Road, the link between Casey Key and US 41 and a designated hurricane evacuation route. The County’s Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources and Libraries and Historical Resources departments are part of the project team to help honor that history.
Why the County is studying a replacement
- One narrow lane. The roadway is a single 16-foot lane with no shoulders, so there is no room to get around a stalled car — a real concern during an evacuation.
- No safe space for walkers and cyclists. There are no sidewalks or bike lanes, and the open steel-grid deck is why cyclists are told to walk their bikes across.
- Wear and corrosion. The swing machinery sits low, in the splash zone, where salt water and storm waves speed up corrosion. Railings also fall short of today’s safety standards.
- A tight boat channel. The bridge allows about 51 feet of horizontal and 9.3 feet of vertical clearance. The U.S. Coast Guard’s guideline for this stretch of the Intracoastal is 90 feet and 21 feet.
- Rising repair costs. The County estimates that keeping the existing bridge in service would cost more than $20 million in repairs over the next 20 years.
The bridge is inspected at least once a year and is currently rated to carry all Florida legal truck loads, but the County notes that load limits could follow if deterioration continues.
The options on the table
- No-Build. Keep the existing bridge and continue repairs. Federal environmental review requires this option as the baseline every alternative is compared against.
- A new swing span bridge, in either a one-lane or two-lane version, that rotates sideways to let boats pass.
- A new single-leaf bascule bridge, which tilts up like the Stickney Point and Albee Road bridges.
Any new bridge would be built on the same alignment as today’s bridge to limit impacts on neighbors, with a temporary bridge just to the north to keep traffic moving during construction (temporarily affecting part of Blackburn Point Park). The County does not expect to need any private property. In the County’s study, rehabilitating the old bridge or rebuilding it exactly as-is are not being carried forward, because the Coast Guard has said it will not approve a project that keeps the current narrow channel. Preservation advocates dispute that conclusion (see below).
Where things stand
- The County is in the Project Development and Environment (PD&E) study, which weighs engineering, environmental, community and historic impacts of each option.
- Public alternatives meetings were held on August 19, 2025, November 12, 2025 and June 11, 2026.
- The Board of County Commissioners makes the final decision, based on the project team’s recommendation. The project site had tentatively listed a public hearing for September 2026; as of mid-September, local news reported the Commission was expected to take up the bridge later this year, with no date set yet.
- The project is funded for the study and design. Construction is not yet funded; the County is still evaluating funding sources.
- Final design is expected to take about a year, wrapping up around the third quarter of 2027.
During construction the County plans to keep the road open as much as practical. Some work will require detours, mostly overnight (6–8 hours), with a limited number of longer closures of 3–5 days. If the existing bridge ever had to close unexpectedly, the emergency plan is to detour traffic to the Albee Road Bridge.
A community debate
Not everyone agrees the bridge should be replaced. In April 2026, residents working with the Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation launched a campaign to keep the existing swing bridge, one of only 11 swing bridges still operating in Florida. The Alliance says nearly 2,000 people have signed petitions or contacted the County Commission in support of preservation, and the campaign has been widely shared in local Facebook groups under the banner “Let’s keep her swinging.”
In September 2026 the Alliance released a preliminary review by Bach Ornamental & Structural Steel, a firm that restores historic bridges. It estimated rehabilitation at about $6 million in 2028 plus roughly $11 million in maintenance through 2043, compared with the County’s replacement estimate of $65–75 million. The review was based on County documents; the firm has not yet inspected the bridge on site.
County staff and consultants have recommended replacement, pointing to the bridge’s condition, the Coast Guard’s clearance requirements, and safety for people walking and biking. County engineer James Stock has also noted that the bridge is one of only two ways off the key, which makes it critical for emergency services and hurricane evacuations. Both views will be in front of the County Commission when it decides.
How to stay informed and share your views
- Visit the County’s project website, BlackburnBridgeProject.com, for presentations, display boards and FAQs, and to sign up for project updates.
- Review the latest materials from the June 11, 2026 meeting: the presentation (PDF) and handout (PDF).
- Email comments to capitalprojectsmeetings@scgov.net, or mail them to Sarasota County, Attn: Timothy Farrell, Project Manager, 1001 Sarasota Center Boulevard, Sarasota, FL 34240.
- Call 311 (or 941-861-5000 from outside Sarasota County).
Celebrate 100 years
Join your neighbors on Wednesday, December 9, 2026 at the Casey Key Tiki Bar to mark the Blackburn Point Swing Bridge’s 100th anniversary. See the event details.
For an overview of the project and how to share your feedback with Sarasota County, see our Blackburn Bridge Project page.
Sources: Sarasota County’s Blackburn Point Bridge Project website and county news releases; ABC7 (April 2026, September 2026); Bay News 9, June 2026. Photo: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (color-enhanced).
